A mention of Twitter will likely elicit one of two responses, either it’s loved or they have no idea what you’re talking about. When I first heard about Twitter I had much the same reaction. I had heard some buzz about it but didn’t really know what exactly I was supposed to do with it.

Just like everything else, Wave being a prime example, the utility is largely contingent on the participation of your circle of friends. Twitter is a way to communicate updates but it’s so much more as well. Including the ability to get updates from things like @CNNBrk and @MacRumors. I find that I’ve become less and less interested in seeing the entire “News Feed” on Facebook. I’d really just rather see everyone’s updates. I like the fact that their limited to 150 characters… that’s great. In all honesty, if you want more pick up the phone.

I realize your average person might not be as addicted/connected to the web as I, but I totally like reading my status updates and Twitter until I see stuff that I know I’ve already read. This is far more easily accomplished with the advent of devices like iPhone, Android, and Blackberry. However, even back in the day of my old, sorry, pathetic flip phone (didn’t even have that fancy screen on the outside), I totally had Facebook sending me text regarding anything that happened. This, of course, is far worse now.

When I got my first iPhone that was really my first experience with a smart phone. This, though, was before apps and all of that jazzy stuff that now makes the iPhone so great. It was not until I switched to the Blackberry that my ridiculous addiction to constant updates began. Anyone that’s been in college or had a job with an active e-mail account linked to a Blackberry will attest, there’s nothing like hearing that there is free food in the office immediately, or getting the e-mail about class being canceled when you wake up.

But even on the Blackberry, I was never this bad… The addiction started there, but it wasn’t until I had the Twitter and Facebook apps on the iPhone that I became truly obsessed and the instances of me accessing Facebook and Twitter from the actual web became so infrequent. Facebook is entirely different on the iPhone… all I get are the updates, none of this so and so just found a cow in some farm animal game… I’ve slowly weeded out the verbose, uninteresting, or consistently manic posters as well. Twitter is fantastic because all of that is already done for me. It’s sort of an exclusive group of people, whom I only follow because I want to hear about. Lets face it, Facebook is out of control. I don’t really have 772 friends that I want to hear about or from all the time, but Facebook would lead you to believe so.

More importantly with the ever-increasing use of Facebook it’s becoming less and less a place where personal information or thoughts really should reside. Friends with your boss? Maybe a co-worker that you’re really not all that close with? There was a time when Facebook was just a bunch of college students and just about anything went, now with brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, co-workers and whole companies for that matter, I find myself turning to Twitter for a more free space. I know my audience on Twitter; I don’t know who is going to be looking at my Facebook.

Did you know that when you add Network, say the company you work for, all of the sudden all of your privacy settings are ignored and the whole entire network can see everything, regardless of your previous settings? I realize this has recently been bandaged, but I think that’s just ridiculous.

Open up a twitter account and protect your Tweets. You’ll soon realize how amazing it is.